{"id":9593,"date":"2024-12-11T21:46:09","date_gmt":"2024-12-11T21:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/?page_id=9593"},"modified":"2024-12-11T21:46:09","modified_gmt":"2024-12-11T21:46:09","slug":"seasonal-read-recommendations","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/home-2\/the-words-december-2024\/seasonal-read-recommendations\/","title":{"rendered":"Seasonal Read Recommendations!"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Birdie Keller ’25<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our parting gift for this mini issue is a list of seasonal read recommendations. Our hope is that these recommendations provide inspiration to tuck yourself in with a blanket and hot chocolate this holiday season and have some well-deserved restful reading time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From Professor Matt Burgess \u2014 Master and Margarita <\/em>by Mikhail Bulgakov<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor those cold winter days when the sun sets too early, what could be better than a mind-bending posthumously published Russian novel about assassins, Pontius Pilate, talking cats, Soviet politics, and a charismatic professor who’s secretly the Devil!?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Jan Beebe \u2014 The Frozen River <\/em>by Ariel Lawhon<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is a historical novel set in the late 1700s and tells the tale of Martha Ballard, renowned midwife. It has great character development and an interesting storyline that begins with what they find frozen in a river. You need to be wrapped in a soft blanket and drinking a warm beverage while reading this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Professor Penelope Geng \u2014 Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmery Life of Anna May Wong<\/em> by Katie Gee Salisbury<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis new biography of Anna May Wong, Hollywood’s first Chinese American star, is packed with insights about the studio system c. 1920s-1950s, the ubiquity of yellowface impersonation, and Wong’s decades-long fight for representation in and outside of Hollywood. I couldn’t put it down.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Professor Daylanne English \u2014 The Book of Delights <\/em>and The Book of MORE Delights<\/em> by Ross Gay<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot seasonal, but [these] are sure to provide warm comfort and food for thought.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From student worker Lucy Flack \u2014 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer\u2019s Stone<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI always recommend Harry Potter 1 during the holiday season, as it evokes a sense of nostalgia, coziness, and warmth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Profesor Amy Elkins \u2014 The House of Broken Bricks<\/em> by Fiona Williams<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t get cozier than the British countryside! Next semester, I’m teaching Fiona Williams’s The House of Broken Bricks <\/em>in ENGL\/ENVI 262: Cottagecore. This novel is described in the Guardian<\/em> as: “A biracial family in rural Somerset struggle with relationships and identity in a debut novel of subtle originality.” I love this book for its gorgeous, sensuous descriptions of nature….it’s like Zadie Smith meets Wendell Berry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From student worker Callisto Martinez \u2014 A Winter\u2019s Promise <\/em>by Christelle Dabos<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe first book of this quartet is set in an alluring yet deadly polar kingdom with a surprise around every corner. Some of the best worldbuilding I’ve read!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And finally, a few short story recommendations from student worker Ahlaam Abdulwali \u2014 \u201cThe Lottery\u201d by Shirley Jackson, \u201cQuicksand\u201d by Nella Larsen, and \u201cMetamorphosis\u201d by Kafka<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Seasonal Reads was also coincidentally the Question of the Week on the board in the English lounge. Check out the fun recommendations that were given there!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sending lots of cozy wishes and congratulations for being (almost) done with the semester!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Birdie Keller ’25 Our parting gift for this mini issue is a list of seasonal read recommendations. Our hope is that these recommendations provide inspiration to tuck yourself in with a blanket and hot chocolate this holiday season and have some well-deserved restful reading time! From Professor Matt Burgess \u2014 Master and Margarita by […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":9605,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-9593","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9593"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9603,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9593\/revisions\/9603"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}